I've done a lot of different things. I served as a US Army Infantry officer both stateside and overseas, managed risk with two major US banks, and became an award-winning novelist. I hold a bachelor's degree from West Point and a master's degree in international affairs from The Fletcher School. I'm a graduate of the US Army Ranger course, the US Army Airborne School, and the Mandarin Chinese language program at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California. St. Martin's Press published my Exile mystery series after I won their Malice Domestic award, and HarperCollins released my military science fiction Sim War books (written as Henry V. O'Neil) as a five-novel series. Risk Management Magazine has published several of my articles, and I released two articles on national security with the US Army Futures Command's "Mad Scientist" program. #riskmanagement #writing #award #militaryservice #publications https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1 2026-10-03 14:22:05 -0400 (Originally published on January 9, 2025 in the US Army Futures Command Mad Scientist Initiative’s blog) In this era of increasing state-on-state violence and decreasing reaction times, passive defense postures may no longer be tenable. Defense strategists now need a more active approach that provides early warning and discourages attacks. This approach is called active defense. Active defense is a proactive security program that pairs comprehensive intelligence collection with operations designed to distract, disrupt, and degrade a hostile party’s offensive capabilities. While this article discusses active defense in terms of a nation managing its security, it can apply to any group of people facing a genuine threat of organized violence. Active defense is especially useful for entities that aren’t strong enough to defeat armed aggression. #NationalSecurity #PublicPolicy #ForeignPolicy #Defense #DefenseStrategy foreign policy, national security, public policy, defense, defense strategy (Originally published on January 9, 2025 in the US Army Futures Command Mad Scientist Initiative’s blog) In this era of increasing state-on-state violence and decreasing reaction times, passive defense postures may no longer be tenable. Defense strategists now need a more active approach that provides early warning and discourages attacks. This approach is called active defense. Active defense is a proactive security program that pairs comprehensive intelligence collection with operations designed to distract, disrupt, and degrade a hostile party’s offensive capabilities. While this article discusses active defense in terms of a nation managing its security, it can apply to any group of people facing a genuine threat of organized violence. Active defense is especially useful for entities that aren’t strong enough to defeat armed aggression. #NationalSecurity #PublicPolicy #ForeignPolicy #Defense #DefenseStrategy foreign policy, national security, public policy, defense, defense strategy Sun, 04 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400 https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/active-defense-shaping-the-threat-environment https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/active-defense-shaping-the-threat-environment (Originally published in Risk Management Magazine) Our increasingly interconnected world can expose your business to unanticipated dangers. Follow this approach to identify and mitigate hidden risks:   1. Imagine your business as the center of a sphere that contains all the factors and entities that influence it, and then analyze those relationships in terms of risk.  2. Give each of those influencers its own sphere, containing the factors and entities that impact it, and analyze how those relationships could indirectly influence you.  3. Wargame possible events at different points on these chains of interconnection, and then consider how you can avoid, mitigate, or react to them. #risk # riskmanagement #spheresofinfluence #wargaming #chainofeffect #chiefriskofficer risk, risk management, spheres of influence, wargaming, chain of effect, Chief Risk Officer (Originally published in Risk Management Magazine) Our increasingly interconnected world can expose your business to unanticipated dangers. Follow this approach to identify and mitigate hidden risks:   1. Imagine your business as the center of a sphere that contains all the factors and entities that influence it, and then analyze those relationships in terms of risk.  2. Give each of those influencers its own sphere, containing the factors and entities that impact it, and analyze how those relationships could indirectly influence you.  3. Wargame possible events at different points on these chains of interconnection, and then consider how you can avoid, mitigate, or react to them. #risk # riskmanagement #spheresofinfluence #wargaming #chainofeffect #chiefriskofficer risk, risk management, spheres of influence, wargaming, chain of effect, Chief Risk Officer Sun, 04 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400 https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/spheres-of-influence-managing-hidden-risks https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/spheres-of-influence-managing-hidden-risks This deck won Second Prize in the 2020 writing competition run by the US Army Futures Command's "Mad Scientist" program. It predicts that technological intrusion into citizens' daily lives will create an "information disruption industry" designed to thwart digital tracking that will have a profound effect on communications in both the military and civilian sectors. #digital #digitaltracking #digitalleash #privacy #privacyprotection #privacyconcerns #defense digital, digital tracking, digital leash, privacy, privacy protection, privacy concerns This deck won Second Prize in the 2020 writing competition run by the US Army Futures Command's "Mad Scientist" program. It predicts that technological intrusion into citizens' daily lives will create an "information disruption industry" designed to thwart digital tracking that will have a profound effect on communications in both the military and civilian sectors. #digital #digitaltracking #digitalleash #privacy #privacyprotection #privacyconcerns #defense digital, digital tracking, digital leash, privacy, privacy protection, privacy concerns Sat, 03 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400 https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/the-information-disruption-industry-and-the-operational-environment-of-the-future https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/the-information-disruption-industry-and-the-operational-environment-of-the-future This deck is a presentation created from the article I published in Risk Management Magazine by the same name. It argues for the establishment of a Maximum Loss Value in every financial transaction, so that the total risk exposure in a crisis can be established. #financialcrisis #risk #riskexposure #dollarsatrisk #hedging, #chiefriskofficer financial crisis, risk, sick management, Dollars at Risk, hedging, Chief Risk Officer This deck is a presentation created from the article I published in Risk Management Magazine by the same name. It argues for the establishment of a Maximum Loss Value in every financial transaction, so that the total risk exposure in a crisis can be established. #financialcrisis #risk #riskexposure #dollarsatrisk #hedging, #chiefriskofficer financial crisis, risk, sick management, Dollars at Risk, hedging, Chief Risk Officer Sat, 03 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400 https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/create-the-certainty-control-the-crisis https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/create-the-certainty-control-the-crisis This deck provides a step-by-step process for creating, monitoring, and maintaining a risk management system that actually works. #risk #riskmanagement #leadership #management #riskmanagementsystem #chiefriskofficer risk, risk management, leadership, management, risk management system, Chief Risk Officer This deck provides a step-by-step process for creating, monitoring, and maintaining a risk management system that actually works. #risk #riskmanagement #leadership #management #riskmanagementsystem #chiefriskofficer risk, risk management, leadership, management, risk management system, Chief Risk Officer Sat, 03 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400 https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/building-a-risk-management-system-that-works https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/building-a-risk-management-system-that-works This is a presentation of an article I published in Risk Management Magazine in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. It draws on my 7 years in financial risk management, and provides step-by-step instruction in creating and maintaining a sound risk management system within any business in the financial sector. #risk #riskmanagement #chiefriskofficer #financialcrisis risk, risk management, Chief Risk Officer, financial crisis This is a presentation of an article I published in Risk Management Magazine in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. It draws on my 7 years in financial risk management, and provides step-by-step instruction in creating and maintaining a sound risk management system within any business in the financial sector. #risk #riskmanagement #chiefriskofficer #financialcrisis risk, risk management, Chief Risk Officer, financial crisis Sat, 03 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400 https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/rebuilding-financial-risk-management https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/rebuilding-financial-risk-management Many well-known management practices are unwisely discarded for reasons ranging from time constraints to perceived inconvenience. That choice is almost always a mistake, and it can have long-term negative effects on individuals, teams, and entire organizations. Here are 7 examples, and why to avoid them. #management #organization #organizationalbehavior #chiefriskofficer #leadership #leadershipmistakes #HR management, organization, organizational behavior, Chief Risk Officer, human resources, leadership, leadership mistakes, human resources Many well-known management practices are unwisely discarded for reasons ranging from time constraints to perceived inconvenience. That choice is almost always a mistake, and it can have long-term negative effects on individuals, teams, and entire organizations. Here are 7 examples, and why to avoid them. #management #organization #organizationalbehavior #chiefriskofficer #leadership #leadershipmistakes #HR management, organization, organizational behavior, Chief Risk Officer, human resources, leadership, leadership mistakes, human resources Sat, 03 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400 https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/discard-at-your-own-risk-7-key-management-practices-a-surprising-number-of-managers-ignore https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/discard-at-your-own-risk-7-key-management-practices-a-surprising-number-of-managers-ignore In this step-by-step approach, Vincent H. O'Neil explains how to craft a complete essay, starting from zero. Beginning with brainstorming, he then takes you through the development of the thesis, the creation of the Thesis Paragraph, the expansion of the Thesis Paragraph to generate supporting paragraphs, and the creation of a concluding paragraph. Each step is accompanied by examples, finishing with a completed essay. #essay #essaywriting #basicessay #essaywritingtips #English #education English, essay, essay writing, basic essay, essay writing tips, education In this step-by-step approach, Vincent H. O'Neil explains how to craft a complete essay, starting from zero. Beginning with brainstorming, he then takes you through the development of the thesis, the creation of the Thesis Paragraph, the expansion of the Thesis Paragraph to generate supporting paragraphs, and the creation of a concluding paragraph. Each step is accompanied by examples, finishing with a completed essay. #essay #essaywriting #basicessay #essaywritingtips #English #education English, essay, essay writing, basic essay, essay writing tips, education Sat, 03 Oct 2026 00:00:00 -0400 https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/writing-the-basic-essay https://speakerdeck.com/vincentoneil1/writing-the-basic-essay